The Royal Raiser

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Thursday, 1 October 2015

Having played the game of Poker now for several years it's easy to forget just how daunting of a game it can be for an absolute beginner. Taking those tentative first steps without fully understanding the rules or the subtle nuances of the game can be quiet a challenging task. There are numerous poker-related websites and forums where new players can ask their questions and seek advice from their more experienced peers. Some however may be a little shy to seek help, maybe considering their question too 'dumb' to post it in a public forum. The only truly dumb questions though are the ones that are never asked and in my experience other players are only too eager to pass on their tips and help a new player get accustomed to the game. The poker world online, although quite a large one, is still a Community and for the most part players are happy to welcome those that are just beginning their poker journey.One such place is a website called PokerSchoolOnline and it has a ever-growing Community of both new players and old-hands. It's the official PokerStars online school for poker and as a result it's packed full of strategy articles, videos from Pro players, courses and quizzes and also a great poker forum plus much more. Check it out for yourself if you haven't heard of it before. One of the neat little features that PokerSchoolOnline rolled out recently was this Poker Tutorial interactive game. It's a fun way to try out playing a couple of poker hands and it's ideal for a person who has never sat at a poker table before to get their feet wet so to speak. Try it out for yourself, you'll have a blast, I promise!

Friday, 15 May 2015

Team PokerStars Pro Jason Mercier has won two Spring Championship of Online Poker titles in the first three days of the festival on PokerStars.

The American star, who is living in Canada throughout the championship, won the $2,100 Fixed Limit Badugi contest (SCOOP 05-H) on Monday night for $39,200, and followed it up yesterday with victory in the $2,100 No Limit Draw event (SCOOP 08-H) for $34,400. He has also secured another three cashes and leads the Overall and High Leader Boards at this early stage.After his latest victory Mercier tweeted: “One scoop two scoop badugi scoop 5card draw scoop…” and followed it up with “This was pretty awesome. As I won the scoop… I go back to supernova status pokerstars :).” It takes Mercier’s career SCOOP titles to three, which is joint fourth on the all-time stats Leader Board.Here’s the PokerStars Blog report on Mercier’s two wins in two nights: http://psta.rs/1H3uIL6. TEAM PRO CASHES

A couple of other Team PokerStars Pros have done well in the opening days of SCOOP, with Chris ‘Money800’ Moneymaker finishing fourth in the $215 Fixed Limit Badugi and Mickey ‘mement_mori’ Petersen coming third in the $215 No Limit Draw for $7,521.Other well-known players that have secured victories so far include Sorel ‘zangbezan24’ Mizzi, who won the $2,100 NL Hold’em (SCOOP 03-H) for $354,960 and now has two SCOOP titles, and Mohsin ‘sms9231’ Charania who won the $1,050 NL Hold’em [Turbo] (SCOOP 04-H) for $198,000. A blog interview with Charania after his win can be read here: http://psta.rs/1IAZwXN. Meanwhile, the reigning World Championship of Online Poker Main Event winner, Fedor ‘CrownUpGuy’ Holz, who won $1.3m last September, is not above playing the Low stakes events in SCOOP, winning the $27 No Limit Draw last night for $7k. Story via PokerStars Press

Friday, 1 May 2015

PokerStars have recently launched a new PokerStars LIVE poker room in Northern Italy, at “Casino de la Vallée”, which is part of a new leisure destination, the Saint-Vincent Resort & Casino. Saint-Vincent is an alpine town not far from the international airports of Turin and Milan Malpensa, and near the Italian border with France and Switzerland.

To celebrate the launch of the event, a Mini Italian Poker Tour event was held in the new

PokerStars LIVE room, with 775 entrants creating a €225,525 prizepool, more than doubling the €100,000 guaranteed in prizes. The event was won by Swiss player Jean Marc Bellini, who took home €42,000 as part of a deal.PokerStars launched this new poker room to give European poker players an outstanding playing experience, with staff selected and trained by the Italian Poker Tour services company. This will guarantee poker players the same high standard of dealers as they have come to expect across both the European Poker Tour and the Italian Poker Tour in a permanent venue in Northern Italy.“The new PokerStars LIVE room in Saint-Vincent aims to become a must-go place for Italy’s poker lover. We’re excited to bring the best of PokerStars’ live poker experience to Northern Italy, and to give players the opportunity to play in a well-run, trusted and high quality new card room,” said Team PokerStars Pro, Luca Pagano.“PokerStars LIVE in Saint-Vincent represents the most visible sign of a significant partnership between PokerStars and the Casino de la Vallée. Two Italian Poker Tour events are already scheduled in this season; regular tournaments are available on a weekly basis, and plenty of cash game action too,” said Marco Trucco, PokerStars Italian Country Manager.The new PokerStars LIVE room in Saint Vincent is the fourth PokerStars LIVE room globally, joining London, Macau and Manila.

Thursday, 26 February 2015

Team PokerStars Pro and staff were recognised for their achievements at the British Poker Awards recently, in an annual ceremony held at The Hippodrome Casino. Tournament director of the European Poker Tour (EPT) and UK & Ireland Poker Tour (UKIPT), Toby Stone, was awarded ‘Best Tournament Director’ for the third consecutive year. Team PokerStars Pro was also well represented as Jake Cody received the award for ‘Best Blogger’ and Daniel Negreanu was named ‘Best International Player’.

On his ‘three-peat’ achievement, Toby Stone said: “I’m absolutely thrilled and humbled to win this again, but I must pay credit to my hard-working floor and dealer team who, without which, none of these events would be possible. They’re among the best in the world and make my job infinitely easier.”

Jake Cody was equally elated after his win: “This was a big surprise and I’m really happy to have won. What makes it even better is that it was a reader’s choice award. To be recognised by the poker fans is amazing.”

EPT London was also nominated for ‘Best UK Tournament’ and ‘PokerStars LIVE at the Hippodrome Casino’ for Best Live Card Room.Story via PokerStars

Tuesday, 3 February 2015

Rational Group also wins Socially Responsible Operator of the Year Online

PokerStars and Rational Group were
both recipients of International Gaming Awards at the annual ceremony held last
night in London. For the third year running, PokerStars won the award for
‘Online Poker Operator of the Year’, and Rational Group was recognised for its
stringent and ethical responsible gaming policies by being awarded the
‘Socially Responsible Operator of the Year Online’.

Lee Jones, PokerStars’ Director of
Poker Communications, was in attendance to accept the awards. After the
ceremony he said, “We are extremely proud and honoured that PokerStars won ‘Online
Poker Operator of the Year’ and that Rational Group won ‘Socially Responsible
Operator of the Year’, both in tough, competitive fields. Personally speaking,
I am perhaps most gratified by the responsible gaming award; it recognizes our
long-standing and ongoing commitment to providing a safe and responsible
environment for our players."

YEAR TO REMEMBER

PokerStars celebrated an historic 2014
that included facilitation of tournament one billion, the launch of the hugely
popular Spin & Go tournaments, new gaming licenses in the UK and Bulgaria,
and the implementation of casino games in selected markets.

In addition to winning the ‘Online
Poker Operator of the Year’ award, PokerStars’ sister site Full Tilt was also a
finalist in the same category, as well as ‘Online Casino Operator of the Year’.

It was also a big night for partners
of the world’s largest poker site, as the Hippodrome Casino in London won the
award for ‘Casino Operator Europe’, and City of Dreams Manila was recognised as
the ‘Casino/Integrated Resort of the Year’. Both properties play host to
PokerStars LIVE poker rooms.

Friday, 8 August 2014

The European Poker Tour (EPT) announced recently that Skrill will once again act as the official payment provider for EPT Season 11.Paul Barclay, VP of Gambling & FX at Skrill said: “Skrill is delighted to be working with the European Poker Tour as its official payment provider sponsor for a third year. The EPT is a well-respected and established brand, and this partnership will help to further strengthen our position as the leading digital wallet among poker players, and indeed for the broader spectrum of gamers. We will continue to play an active role as sponsors during season 11 of the EPT and as such, are looking forward to attending the tournaments and interacting directly with players throughout the season.”

EPT President, Edgar Stuchly, said: “We are pleased to have Skrill back on board as official payment provider for the EPT for a third year. Skrill is one of the most popular online deposit and withdrawal methods, providing easy, safe and secure payment options for poker players and EPT players alike.” Barclay added: “We are also excited to be able to offer online freeroll promotions throughout the year that give players the chance to win a VIP EPT package.” Skrill will be running 10 online freeroll tournaments throughout the Season, awarding a VIP experience at the PokerStars and Monte-Carlo®Casino EPT Grand Final. For further information got to: www.europeanpokertour.com/skrill.EPT Season 11 gets under way in Barcelona from August 16-27 and it will mark the tour’s 100th Main Event. For a third successive year the EPT and Estrellas Poker Tours will combine to feature 44 events, providing a fantastic live poker experience for players of all levels and abilities.About the European Poker TourThe European Poker Tour (EPT) is the world’s richest and most popular poker tour. Since 2004, the EPT has paid out over EUR617 million in tournament prize pools, and hosted successful festivals across Europe. The EPT also visits the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA), which takes place every January in the Bahamas and is the largest poker festival outside of Las Vegas. Season 11 of the EPT builds on the success of a decade of world-class live poker events, and major poker festivals are being held in Barcelona (which will celebrate the 100th EPT event) London, Prague, and Deauville, with the PokerStars and Monte-Carlo®Casino EPT Grand Final to be held in Monaco. Further stops for Season 11 will be announced in due course.Further information on the EPT is available online at http://www.europeanpokertour.com/

About Skrill

Skrill is one of Europe's leading online payments companies and among the world's largest independent digital wallet providers with 36 million account holders. Skrill enables any customer to make online payments conveniently and securely without revealing personal financial data, as well as send and receive money online cost-effectively. Skrill’s mission is to become the preferred choice for online payments.Skrill’s worldwide payment network offers businesses access to direct payment processing via 100 payment options in 200 countries and territories and 40 currencies, through just one integration, allowing everyone to pay and get paid globally.For more information, visit www.skrill.com

Friday, 1 August 2014

Grammy award-winning DJ Roger Sanchez, one of the biggest names in electronic music, will be playing a three-hour set at the spectacular EPT100 celebration party in Barcelona.The party, which is being sponsored by PokerTracker, will kick-off at 10.30pm on August 20 at Teatre Principal, located in the heart of the city’s famous Las Ramblas boulevard. Teatre Principal is a stunning converted 19th century theatre that plays host to the best club nights in Barcelona. Estrellas and EPT players are invited to attend the party to enjoy an open bar for the first two hours as well as a special VIP area once the club is open to the public.EPT President Edgar Stuchly said: “We are absolutely thrilled that Roger Sanchez will be helping us celebrate the 100th EPT and also thank PokerTracker, the Official EPT Poker Tracking Partner, for sponsoring the event. EPT100 is one of the most important milestones in our history and we are getting ready to host a record number of online qualifiers. I suspect that Sanchez’s performance will prove an even bigger incentive for players trying to win their seat in the tournament.”Sanchez is a pioneer of house music and has worked with a string of stars including Diana Ross, Kylie Minogue, Daft Punk and Madonna. Producer and promoter Sanchez, who founded successful house music label Stealth Records, is the biggest star ever to perform at a PokerStars party in Europe. His weekly Release Yourself radio show has a worldwide audience of more than 15 million listeners. For more info about Roger Sanchez, check out his official website http://www.rogersanchez.com/.EPT100 is set to be one of the most spectacular poker events ever held, marking a milestone in the history of the European Poker Tour. Joining forces with the national Estrellas Poker Tour once again, the EPT Barcelona Poker Festival will run August 16-27, 2014 and is expected to top last year’s staggering 9,000 tournament entries. For more information, please visit http://psta.rs/EPTBCN.About the European Poker Tour

The European Poker Tour (EPT) is the world’s richest and most popular poker tour. Since 2004, the EPT has paid out over EUR617 million in tournament prize pools, and hosted successful festivals across Europe. The EPT also visits the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA), which takes place every January in the Bahamas and is the largest poker festival outside of Las Vegas. Further information on the EPT is available online at europeanpokertour.comAbout Roger SanchezGrammy Award winning producer, remixer and DJ Roger Sanchez is one of the world’s foremost names in House music. Known as a "DJ’s DJ" and a "Producer’s producer," Sanchez’ unwavering status as a top-global master of the genre is a testament to his robust belief in the power of music to liberate people, physically and mentally. Follow the links below for more information and music:facebook.com/rogersanchezfanpagetwitter.com/djrogersanchezyoutube.com/rogersanchezsoundcloud.com/rogersanchezStory via PokerStars Press